The Dark World
by SHELBMAC
Summary: I created the line that ties together Underworld, Twilight, True Blood, Supernatural and the movie Daybreakers. You should be familiar with the vampire hierarchy explained in the Underworld movies. 2,800 views.
1. Chapter 1

The waitress snuck another look at the man sitting in her section. The diner was empty save for him. He had been coming in every night around dusk and didn't leave until the very first rays of sunshine could be seen hitting the window panes. He always sat in the same seat and ordered a cup of coffee he never drank.

Squaring her shoulders, the waitress strode confidently up to him.

"Can I get you anything else?" She asked, eyeing his untouched coffee cup.

The man looked up. She had no idea what he said next, but she left the table regardless.

As she reentered the kitchen, she thought she heard the man say, "He's late."

* * *

On the opposite side of the world, in a rainy northwestern state in the United States, a woman by the name of Oro stood at the end of a long driveway. She glanced up at the sky, which was darkening. The sun was trying to stay above the horizon, but it was an uphill battle. The lack of sunshine and the element of surprise were in Oro's favor tonight. Arturro had mentioned this coven many times and curiosity had finally seized such a strong hold that Oro could not help but visit these creatures. She began to move with inhuman speed up the lengthy driveway.

* * *

Back at the diner, the clock tolled at 1:00AM. The lone man sitting in a booth looked up at the door just as it flew open. Another man, just as pale and lifeless-looking as the first, entered.

"Marcus, you're late." The man sitting said.

"I thought I picked the time, Arturro," Marcus responded. His eyes flickered to the waitress, who was peeking around the bar again.

"Do you come here every night?" Marcus asked.

"I come here to think," Arturro responded, nodding, "and I know that it is safe to speak freely," he added in a hushed tone.

Marcus sat down.

"Well, here's something to think about," He said, "I just met with the Authority, who have begun the process of vampire mainstreaming in the South."

Arturro's grey eyes widened. "They can't do that. Our kind can never mainstream! We'll be killed- surely you stopped them, Marcus."

Marcus rolled his eyes. "They enjoy going behind my back and creating things such as the new synthetic blood substitute in Japan. They had a solution for every problem I mentioned."

Arturro shook his head. "This is absurd. You are God in their eyes. You should be able to control all of our kind."

Marcus half-smiled at his first creation. Marcus was reaching such an age where numbers didn't even matter, but Arturro kept him at a pace equal to the humans. He hardly ever bothered to interact with the vampires a fraction of his age who called themselves the Authority. This was new, though. To walk among the public without having to hide your true nature… that was something worth listening to.

"We're going to give mainstreaming a try, Arturro, and let the Authority take the fall when it all goes up in flames. I did give them one ultimatum, which they agreed to quite readily."

Marcus's black eyes focused on the waitress through the wall. She suddenly collapsed in unconsciousness. Arturro waited for his maker, the first vampire in existence, to continue.

"I don't blame you for what you did, Arturro, two thousand years ago. I most certainly passed the trait along to you to want to be a god, a creator of your own."

Arturro swallowed. He knew where this was going. Two thousand years ago, he decided that if his maker could create vampires, what was stopping him from making his own line? Arturro spent half of a century making a new breed of vampires. Marcus stood by and watched his first born dig himself into a hole. The 'new' vampires, now referred to as Third Generation or Arturrian vampires, were something quite different than Marcus's creations. Arturro aimed for harder and whiter skin, along with eye color that changed with age and hunger. His vampires had no blood in their system and, most importantly, the sun had hardly any effect on their skin. Instead of catching fire when they stepped into direct sunlight, the diamond fragments Arturro had bred into their skin would sparkle. This was one problem Arturro could not solve. Even though his new breed could walk in daylight and never needed to sleep, it was somewhat harder to take them seriously when their skin glittered. The only way to kill an Arturrian was to rip them apart and burn them.

"Only real vampires can mainstream," Marcus said. "When word gets out that we are real, Third Generation vampires will believe that they can reveal themselves as well. That cannot happen. The less humans know, the better. They are a special breed, Arturro, I'll give you that. They do have certain qualities that we could benefit from having, but once a human sees their skin flashing like diamonds in the sunlight, we lose all respect from mankind. We will go from being feared to being laughed at. I will not allow that to happen, Arturro. It is up to you to ensure that all two-thousand of your breed will comply. There is only one way. You must kill them all."

* * *

Oro approached the large house cautiously. From what she'd heard over the years, these Arturrians were different than most Third Generation vampires. She glanced up at the sky once more, only to confirm that the sky was cloudless. The half-moon was clear and supplying a plentiful amount of light, but many windows in the mansion was also alight. The vampires within would have no issues identifying her as their own kind.

"There's someone outside."

"I didn't hear a car."

"It's a woman, wearing a fair amount of clothes for such a warm evening."

"She looks pale. Could she be….?"

"I think she is, Edward. Can you read her thoughts?"

There was silence.

Oro sighed.

"I can hear you," she called.

The door opened slowly and the Arturrian known as Carlisle stood in the doorway.

"Can I help you?" he asked politely.

Oro sighed again. "You can drop the pretense. I know what you and your family are."

In a flash, Oro was on the porch, a mere foot away from the other vampire.

"I would say that I am like you, but we are really hardly anything alike."

Two more of the Arturrians peeked around Carlisle. One was a female, the other male. The female managed to sneak past Carlisle and looked at Oro quizzically.

"She is a vampire, Carlisle," the one known as Alice said in a high-pitched voice, "but I can't _see_ her."

"Who are you?" Jasper asked from over Alice's head.

"My name is Oro. I am a vampire, but unlike the rest of you, I am a _real_ vampire."

There was silence from the group of Arturrians.

"I came here today to tell you the truth; that you are what we call Third Generation Vampires, or Arturrian vampires."

She held up a gloved hand. "I will prove myself, starting now, if you will invite me in."

Carlisle listened to Alice and Jasper debate quietly behind him. They finally moved out of the doorway, and Carlisle said, "Please come in."

The most cautious of their coven was Edward. He could not read Oro's thoughts and therefore did not trust her. His mate and child did not make an appearance, which caught Oro's attention, but she had more important things to be concerned about.

"If you would be so kind, I would definitely like to know what you were saying outside," Carlisle said. His coven was gathered on the sofa farthest from where Oro had sat.

Oro began, "There is much I would like to tell you today. It would be easiest and fastest if you do not ask questions until I am finished. I will show you how I am what most humans picture when they think of vampires."

She pulled off her sunhat and placed it on the chair next to her.

"We are alike in many ways. You all saw that I can move just as fast as any of you can, if not faster. I hunt and I do require blood to survive. I am also not among the living."

She paused, watching their faces.

"But that's where our likeness comes to an end. I will burn in sunlight and," she pulled back her sleeve, and watching the Arturrians closely, sank her teeth into her arm.

She lifted her mouth from her arm and it was covered in blood.

"You have no blood in your veins, whereas I have quite a fair amount of blood at my disposal. "

Oro's eyes flickered to the one known as Jasper. He was not sitting on the couch, but instead hovered over Alice. His entire body shifted when the scent of Oro's blood filled the room.

"If you make any move towards me, I will kill you without hesitation," Oro stated bluntly as she stared him down. "The most obvious difference between us is my strength- and these," she bared her teeth and suddenly two good-sized fangs popped out of the roof of her mouth. This time, all the vampires jumped a little.

Without waiting for a response, she continued, licking her lips. "I am not an illusion. All that I have told you thus far has been true. But to really prove to you that I am what I claim to be is to explain history as it really was."


	2. Chapter 2

Oro looked at each face.

"You have been led to believe that your past is the only vampiric history that exists. That could not be farther from the truth. Even at your oldest, you are mere children compared to my maker. Even those who have labeled themselves as the Volturri are young."

Jasper made as if to say something, but Alice- with her ability to foretell the future- managed to stop him before he began.

"I am much older than the Volturri. I will tell you something about them. They believe themselves to be royalty among your kind, but they can be killed quite easily. They, along with you two," she pointed to Carlisle and Alice, "were created by a vampire named Arturro. Arturro was created by Marcus, the very first vampire in existence. They are both still alive today and that is why you are referred to as _Third Generation_. Marcus is the first generation, and all those he created, Arturro and myself included, are second generation."

At this point, Edward got up from his seat and left the room. Oro paused, waiting for him to come back. Seeing that the Arturrians were watching her, Oro said, "I don't want to have to repeat myself, even if he could hear me from any distance."

A minute later, Edward returned, followed by his mate, Bella, carrying their offspring, the half-breed Renesmé. Following them was Jacob Black. Oro knew he'd show up eventually and was eager to address him personally, after her story.

"Bella and Jacob were out hunting with Nessie," Edward explained, giving Oro a cold stare, "I have filled them in on your account so far."

Oro gave him an equally icy look back, and turned to Bella. The young Arturrian was holding her abomination of a child close to her, as if to protect her from Oro. This amused Oro, which led her to grin at the child, flashing her fangs.

"Let's continue then, shall we?" Oro asked.

"I can't really tell you why Arturro decided to go rogue and create his own breed, but he started with the Volturri, and his bliss at being God didn't last very long. Marcus changed me just in time so I could witness Arturro's fall from grace. Around two thousand years ago, the first Arturrians had the idea of splitting from their maker- just as Arturro had done- and create more of their own kind. Arturro tried to step in, but he only managed to kill one of the brothers." She looked at Carlisle, "You probably didn't know that there was once a fourth brother in the Volturri. Arturro claimed to have no control over who survived his experimentations back in those days as he tried to change DNA and perform magic, but it eventually came down to Aro, Caius, Marcus and Johanas. Marcus was Arturro's favorite, probably because of the joke it was to his maker."

Oro stood and began to pace slowly.

"Here is where events came quickly and unexpectedly. The first four Arturrians began as any creation would: they loved Arturro more than anything and strove to learn all they could from their maker. But Aro believed he was stronger than his master. Arturro had unexpectedly put his own personality into Aro, which led to a mutiny, for lack of a better term. Aro began creating his own vampires and contorted the minds of his brothers to trust that they didn't need Arturro. The four fled into the hills of Europe. Arturro easily tracked them, but only managed to catch Johanas. I have heard the story from my maker, but only when Arturro told me himself did I understand how hard it was for Arturro to kill his life's work."

Oro's pacing had led her to the far wall. She turned to face the vampires and leaned against the wall.

"I think you all know how things played out from there. The Volturri then took charge and created a new vampiric world, which they now rule over. Marcus and Arturro have been watching their actions for many centuries, waiting for you to exterminate yourselves. It almost happened last year, when you all met in winter, am I correct? It would have been quite a fight to witness, I am sure. A fight over a child would be bloody, indeed."

This time, Jacob twitched. "Why exactly are you telling us this now?" He asked in a clipped tone. Oro understood that everyone in the room viewed her as a threat and wanted her out of the house as soon as possible.

"About two months ago, it was decided that second generation vampires are going to reveal themselves to all of humanity," Oro said, "We call it mainstreaming." She held up a hand as all the vampires in the room made to speak at once. "It was also decided that all third generation vampires should not be allowed to mainstream. So, Arturro- with some help- is travelling around the world and is making sure his creations will stay quiet."

"Why would we want to mainstream anyway?" Jasper asked. "The humans will kill you, regardless of how tame you appear to be."

"You may feel that way, but you cannot speak for all of your kind," Oro responded. "Arturro's plan is simple. Marcus gave him one ultimatum- to kill all of you and ensure that none of you open your mouths."

The larger Arturrian, Emmet, was on his feet in a flash.

"He can't do that," he snarled, "He can't come here and expect us to roll over and die just to protect his own venture! He _created_ us!"

Oro shrugged. "There's nothing any of us can do. Arturro won't be in the United States for a while. You still have some time." She laughed. The others stayed sullenly silent.

Oro then turned to Jacob. "There was another reason why I came today. It has been bothering me for quite a few centuries and I need to clarify some things with you, wolf."

Jacob looked back at her without saying anything.

"Just as your friends here had no idea of their true history, I know that you are under false impressions, as well. You, by the standards of Marcus and all second generation vampires, are not a real werewolf."

Jacob opened his mouth, but Oro held up a hand.

"Let me finish, dog, and everything will make sense. It all goes back to Marcus once more. I suggest you sit back down. If you were to lose control and jump at me, I am sure your comrades here would not enjoy watching me rip you apart and then drain the blood from your body."

Heat rushed to Jacob's face as he took a step back and put a hand on Bella's shoulder. He did not sit down.

"Marcus was not an only child. He had a brother, William. From what I've been told, they were quite an enjoyable pair when together, but circumstances has forbidden them from being anywhere near each other in many thousands of years. Marcus was the first vampire, as you all now know, after being bit by one especially rabid bat. William was then gifted as well, by being bitten by a rabid wolf as he tried to track down his brother in the woods on the same night. Marcus has theorized that the wolf was rabid first and had bitten the bat, which transferred the disease. As you can guess, William became the first werewolf. The disease caused him to take his now-permanent form. William cannot, and will never be able to change back into a human form. Every human he bit became a werewolf everlasting, too. But, sometime in the past, genes were altered and breeding took place, which produced a man named Lucian. Lucian was what we call a Lycan. Lycans are more common werewolves who can change back and forth between their human and werewolf forms. But Lycans must change into their pelts during the full moon, which is probably why you call them the 'Children of the Moon'. Between William's descendants and Lucian's, those are the only real werewolves in existence."

"If we are not werewolves," Jacob asked, "then what are we?"

"The proper term for your kind is shapeshifter," Oro responded. "You are not a werewolf for a number of reasons. If you wish to be called a werewolf, you must compare yourself to William and Lucian. They had no control of the change, while you can change whenever and wherever, and the moon has no effect on you. The form they took on once changed was a combination of a human and a wolf, whereas yours is pure wolf. There are other smaller reasons, such as your telepathy when you are in wolf-form, but there is one very crucial reason why you cannot possibly hold the name of a werewolf."


	3. Chapter 3

Oro paused and her face seemed to become darker before she resumed.

"It is your unnatural and rather disturbing friendliness with these vampires. They are third generation, but blood-drinkers nonetheless! The way you reacted when you first saw me should have been your standard reaction when faced with any vampire. Werewolves are not compatible with vampires in any situation and yet here you are, standing in front of any threat that may appear to your beloved vampires. Werewolves and vampires are sworn enemies until the end of time! Shifters who take the form of a wolf and have the nerve to call themselves 'werewolves' dishonors the true wolves and makes me more sick than if I was faced with a real werewolf. If you were a real descendant of William, I would have not been able to sit here calmly. You would have been dead an hour ago, and for that you are fortunate."

With every one of her accusations, Oro had taken a step closer to Jacob. Now she stood a mere three feet away from him. Her eyes and the veins that ran through her face and closest to her eyes had become black. Her fangs were out and anger made her lip curl into a snarl.

"After Aro, Caius and Marcus had fled, Arturro recruited many creatures to help him track down his creations. The most important were your ancestors, the first shapeshifters. He encouraged them to be as similar to real werewolves as possible, to give them the greatest advantage over vampires. He couldn't possibly ask a real werewolf to assist him. It was working out quite well, especially in this province. That is, until one person managed to throw off the entire system."

Oro took a step back and looked straight into Bella's eyes.

"Arturro used to talk a lot about one woman, especially in the past couple years. He would wonder aloud how one woman could manipulate his creations- an extension of himself, in a way- to do her bidding and put themselves in danger for her. How could she, he would ask me, have the power to control Arturrians as a mere human? I could not answer. That is my final reason for coming here today. I wanted to figure out how one woman- your most treasured Bella- could be so powerful, before Arturro arrived and wiped your little coven out."

Bella didn't say anything. None of them made any move to defend her. _Perhaps they truly understand that I am the superior here,_ Oro thought.

"I was under the impression that Bella was something to be feared, that she was cunning, manipulative and quick. I have spent an hour with you and I can now say with a fair amount of confidence that you have sorely disappointed me today, Bella. You sit there clutching your own creation and yet have not spoken a word in your own defense. None of you will pose much of a threat to Arturro when he arrives."

"It was our decision to befriend Bella," Emmet said strongly, "Edward chose her, she didn't make him."

"Bella has also become a most valuable and cherished part of our family," Carlisle continued. "Her friendship with the wolves- the shifters- has proven most priceless to us."

Edward and Jacob seemed incapable of forming words. Both were focused on Oro with a desire to maim.

"That's all very nice," Oro said, brushing off their statements with a sweep of her hand, "but I think you missed the point. Whether you meant to or not, you have made a mess of our arrangement and Arturro will make you pay. He is coming, do not doubt me. He has been instructed to kill all of you, no exceptions. Arturro was easy-going during the first hunt. He tried to lie low and let the shifters handle the problem and keep you all in line. But now all that is shot and I know how angry he is. Not only does he have rebellious shifters to discipline, he has the law of Marcus to contend with. I did not come here today to defend you against him. If need be, I will help him eradicate you. The one thing that is in your favor is that I am forbidden from harming you unless you threaten me. Arturro has specifically singled this coven out for his own satisfaction."

Oro took two steps back.

"This has been fun and all, but-"

Magnified by their enhanced hearing, all the vampires were able to distinctly hear the crunch of boots on the gravel outside.

Oro grinned just as Carlisle said, "Get out of my house."

Oro looked surprised as she was forced towards the door.

"You're learning!" She exclaimed. "I require an invitation to stay!"

Throwing open the door, Oro managed to take one step out onto the porch before regaining her balance from the force of Carlisle's command. She straightened her shirt, and then looked out onto the driveway.

"You're early, Arturro," Oro said pleasantly.


	4. Chapter 4

Behind Oro, the Arturrians rushed to the door. Without even pausing, Jacob managed to push his way to the front. He was shaking with his need to change forms.

Arturro was not alone on the driveway. Marcus had decided to come along and was slowly making his way up the driveway.

To the Third Generation vampires, Arturro and Marcus looked nothing like the Volturri who had set the standard for older vampires. Their faces showed no signs of age, not even a single wrinkle. Their eyes were blue and green- not a trace of red or orange. They could have been in their early twenties for how old they appeared. Arturro was blond and Marcus had his black hair pulled back into a low ponytail.

"Oro," Marcus said, his voice level, "come here." His voice was sleek and unaccented.

Oro was at his side in a flash. With Marcus as her maker, she could not deviate from any command he voiced.

"Why must you torment the fangless?" Marcus asked. "They already have nothing in their miserable lives as vampire impersonators and here you are, rubbing it in their faces."

Arturro didn't seem to hear as Marcus badmouthed his creations.

"Did you know the infamous Bella Cullen is here, Marcus?" Oro asked. She turned back to the house and raised her eyebrows. "But of course all of her slaves must stand before her because she cannot protect herself and that disgrace of a vampire child she managed to create."

Suddenly, a boy no longer stood on the porch- in his place was a wolf of extreme proportions. This wolf was snarling and spiting and making his way off the porch. The Arturrians made a move to stop him, but Jacob was too fast.

In one leap, Jacob was above Oro, but it was Arturro's hand that darted out and grabbed Jacob's throat in midair and managed to hold the wolf in place.

Arturro closed his eyes and spoke slowly. His voice was free of the Romanian accent that Oro's held.

"I know Oro explained that you are not a werewolf. This is true. If you were _anything,_" his voice became a growl, which caused all his creations to involuntarily shudder, "_anything_ like a real werewolf, you would be more of a match for me. Oro was also correct in her verdict that your decision to be loyal to the vampires you swore to control has deeply disappointed me."

He opened his eyes and focused them on the writhing beast he held aloft with one hand.

"In reality, a bite from a werewolf would cause immediate death to a vampire. Your bite would hardly break my skin, as if you'd ever get that far."

Beside him, Marcus shifted and crossed his arms.

"Stop playing with them, Arturro, and finish the job." Marcus rolled his eyes.

Seeming to only move an inch, Arturro threw Jacob back towards the house. This time, Bella ran out, carrying the child. She crooned to Jacob, and then focused a steely gaze on the three.

Movement from the sides of the house caught their attention. Many more of Jacob's kin were emerging from the forest; wolves of all sizes had received Jacob's call and had come to his aid.

Arturro barely gave them a glance before pulling out a cell phone. His fingers moved faster than even Oro could follow. Snapping the phone shut, he turned expectantly towards the shadows within the trees along the driveway behind him, Marcus and Oro.

Oro jumped back as seven men moved from the forest along the driveway and stood next to Arturro and Marcus.

"You must be kidding," she said, he voice a whisper, "How could you even begin to…?" Her voice trailed off.

Suddenly the wolves began making quiet whines and shifting uneasily.

Jacob looked at Edward, who then spoke quickly to his companions.

"He says those men smell like wolves and that we need to run."

There was a general consent from the coven as they all agreed it was the best for their survival.

Oro watched Bella struggle as she tried to comprehend that she was not the strongest species on earth anymore. It would be tough, she agreed, to suddenly have to accept that those whom you thought were indestructible were now as fragile as glass.

However, before any of the Arturrians could make a move, the seven men began to shift. Their legs and arms contorted and lengthened considerably, while their spines and skulls crackled. Hands became clawed paws and suddenly their faces became muzzles and fangs and red eyes. Fur rippled across their bodies and as the change came to a conclusion, they half-slouched, panting with the heat of the oncoming hunt.

"Incredible," Oro said quietly from behind Marcus. Even at her age, she was slightly fearful of fully formed werewolves and had a strong desire to rip them apart. But somehow Arturro had structured an agreement with them.

"You and your family have caused turmoil for vampires across the world, but it has appeared that you have upset the werewolves the most," Arturro called. "And you know how uncontrollable the anger of a wolf can become."

Now the seven werewolves were snapping their jaws with anticipation. Without any command, they moved towards the house.

If a human had been observing the following events, they would have not been able to identify who moved faster or what happened in any order. Once the weres had begun stalking forward, the shifters let out a collective howl and lunged forward to meet them. Oro and Arturro waited only one moment to follow, but the Arturrians all scattered. Three ran forward while the rest seemed to vanish into the woods. Emmet and Carlisle ran straight with the shifters, while Jasper moved to the side.

Oro came into contact with half a dozen furry hides but didn't bother with any wolf, whether it was a shifter or a were. She tried to focus on the trail of the other Arturrians but the woods reeked of their scent. She began aimlessly flying through the underbrush, listening for anything she could use.

Behind her, Marcus and Arturro were preoccupied with the increasing numbers of shifters. Two of the weres had turned to follow her into the woods and a trickle of fear ran down her spine as Oro felt them following her. She quickly dismissed her old fears and remembered they were on her side, at least for the time being.

She and the weres searched for half the night. They would chase one Arturrian, and then a pack of shifters would intercept them and force them back to defend themselves. A single, strangled scream, followed by a series of werewolf howls pierced the gloom as daylight slowly approached. Oro wondered which Arturrian had fallen.


	5. Chapter 5

As they sky began to lighten and Oro's instincts started telling her to get underground soon, she spotted a flash of a white shirt in the distance. She gave a hand signal to the wolves behind her and they swiftly flew by her, stretching their wolf-human hybrid bodies out to full speed.

Suddenly, Oro let out a hiss and rolled behind a tree as a warm beam of light hit her leather jacket. Sunlight, no matter how faint, burned like nothing else. Now she had to finish the job before the real day began, or get out of there as quickly as possible. She held her breath and listened hard. She could pick up the sounds of paws on the soft earth but nothing else. Marcus, she knew, was long gone. He valued his life much more than the destruction of the Arturrians and he also knew Arturro and the weres could handle this without him.

Oro closed her eyes as she heard the softest crunch of leaves behind her. The overall stench of the forest was too confusing with the mingled scents of Arturrians, weres, and shifters for her to determine what was approaching and she also knew it was working in her favor. Whatever was coming surely didn't know she was here, either.

In one fluid motion, Oro struck out her left arm and felt a gratifying impact of hard skin against her own. Without opening her eyes, she pulled the Arturrian behind the tree by their neck. Opening her eyes, she saw she had captured the blond woman, who now was clawing and snarling. Oro returned the snarl and gripped one of the woman's arms in her free hand and pulled as hard as she could.

Oro had killed a few Arturrians in her time, but the sound of their flesh ripping never ceased to amaze her. The sound of a jacket zipping up would be best to describe it. As the detached limb flew somewhere to Oro's right, the woman- Rosalie, Oro know remembered- let out a freakish howl. Cursing herself for not quieting her sooner, Oro knew she had to work quickly before the rest of the Arturrians came to investigate. She just hoped that the weres would keep them busy for a few more minutes.

Now there was sunlight on both sides of the tree. Oro's time was running out as she considered her options.

The quickest way to ensure the death of an Arturrian would be by fire. But Oro didn't have a bonfire at hand and she held Rosalie by the throat and her remaining arm. Surely those were the footfalls of Arturrians she could now hear approaching.

Without hesitation, Oro enacted her only option. Releasing the arm, she stuck her own into the direct sunlight. The skin immediately started forming blisters and suddenly ignited. Fire hurt far worse than any werewolf venom and Oro almost screamed in agony. She could not think of any quicker way to create a flame and Rosalie was silenced as she watched Oro's arm. Her eyes widened as she realized what Oro intended to do and began to scream once more.

* * *

By the time the surviving Arturrians arrived at the tree where Oro had held Rosalie, there was only a small pile of smoking ashes at the base. Oro had fled as soon as Rosalie had caught fire and even though she was a good distance away, Emmet knew he had to give chase. He kneeled beside the remains of his beloved and the others knew to stay silent. The werewolves had left sometime after Oro and Arturro, although probably not by choice. Arturro had let out some sort of high-pitched whistle and the weres suddenly disappeared. The battle had killed five of the shifters and two Arturrians- Rosalie and Esmé. Jacob, Edward, Bella and the child had fled at the first sight of the weres, leaving the rest of their family behind. Carlisle had understood that they were the most important to keep alive and knew he, Esmé, Rosalie, Emmet, Jasper and Alice would stay behind and hold them off. Even though neither Edward, nor Bella, nor Jacob knew of their deaths, Esmé and Rosalie had knowingly sacrificed themselves.

* * *

In southern Canada, Jacob- still in his wolf form- kept even with the two vampires at his side. The child was on his back, where he felt she was safest. They had been running for at least six hours now, and were not planning on stopping anytime soon. They had taken extensive care to confuse their tracks and cut through as many fast-running rivers as possible. Near dawn, the two weres trailing them had fallen back. Jacob knew they could have followed them indefinitely and didn't know how much longer they would have to keep running, or if they could ever stop.

* * *

Arturro had tracked down Oro easily and now sat next to her in the basement of some abandoned house. The seven werewolves had acquiesced when Arturro called them off and now stood watch in the main level of the house. Oro was still confused as to why they were obeying a vampire but she had more pressing concerns. Her arm was blackened and would require at least a day to heal. She would need to also ingest a fair amount of blood if she ever hoped to use it again. The weres upstairs had changed back into humans and had brought her some game from the woods, but they refused to bring her a human. It seemed that their agreement with Arturro only went so far.

Oro drifted into an uncomfortable sleep while Arturro paced. He knew Marcus would be upset with him for not completing the mission in one night. His creations were faster than he recalled and they now had all those cursed shifters on their side. Perhaps he could recruit more second generation vampires to assist him once night fell again. There was also one more issue. As the day wore on and he and Oro were confined to this basement, his creations could flee across the globe and ensure a safe distance between them. Arturro growled and pulled out a cell phone.

After one ring, a woman answered.

The voice said, "You promised to only call once, Arturro. Is this your call?"

"Yes," Arturro responded, "I am calling for my favor."

* * *

Once Arturro hung up, he woke Oro. She sat up slowly and flexed her burned hand. It was slowly healing. After yawning, she asked Arturro, "What's the plan?"

Arturro said, "We cannot leave for a while longer and by now, many of my creations must be aware of the hunt. I made a call and now we at least can track them and perhaps slow them down."

"Who did you call?" Oro narrowed her eyes.

"Hannah Malkin."

Oro didn't move.

"You did not call _Hannah Malkin._" She said in a low voice.

Arturro raised his eyebrows.

"Then you tell me, Oro, who did I call?"

Oro shook her head and said, "I cannot believe you would resort to this. She and her family are worse than the werewolves, Arturro! They'll make you believe that they're helping you and then turn and slit your throat! Tell me, are Rachel and Lucia coming, too? They'll kill us all!"

Arturro held up his hands.

"Easy, Oro, we need help. Either we ask them or we ask more werewolves for help. Which would you rather have?"

Oro stood up and started for the stairs.

"I would rather have twenty-thousand slobbering, angry werewolves on my side than three _witches!_"


	6. Chapter 6

"I hate witches," Leroan the werewolf said, shivering.

Six werewolves nodded in agreement with their brother.

Oro had run up the stairs and confronted them with Arturro's plan. Now Oro and Arturro sat facing the weres in the darkening living room and waited for the witches to show up.

"How can we make sure they won't attack us?" Another were, Henry, asked.

"We can't." Oro said curtly, eyeing Arturro.

Arturro rolled his eyes and said, "They owe me, Oro. Over the mast many centuries, I have anticipated the need for their assistance and managed to save them against many of our own kind. It was the three sisters, Hannah, Lucia and Rachel, against fourteen vampires. Witch blood happens to be very tasty and one vampire could survive for many years off their blood. I intervened and in return, I asked for one favor. They said they would support me in one endeavor and I called upon that agreement today."

* * *

A few minutes later, there was a soft knock on the door. The weres shifted uneasily and Oro jumped up automatically. Arturro got up slowly and went to the door.

One woman stood in doorway.

"Hannah, thank you for coming," Arturro said.

The woman, very tall with flowing dark hair and a cautious expression, looked down on Arturro.

"We are much stronger than when you last saw us, Arturro." Her voice was deep and all the weres took a step away from the door. Hannah's eyes flickered once to them.

"If you or these wolves attempt to eliminate us the same way you plan to kill your own children, we will _obliterate _you."

She punctuated each word with a look at each person in the room.

Arturro nodded, almost nonchalantly.

"But," Hannah continued, "you once helped us and we honor our promises."

She stepped backwards and revealed two other women.

"The ones you hunt have distanced themselves greatly from this region," the shortest of the sisters said.

The third sister continued, "With a spell, we can bring them to a halt."

Oro looked over at Arturro and out of the corner of her eye she saw the weres mumbling to each other.

Arturro replied to the witches, "Do whatever you think is needed to stop my creations."

The witches joined hands a good distance away from the house and began to chant. Oro backed away from the door and ended up next to the weres. Now she was trapped in a room with two of her biggest fears and she was choosing the weres.

Henry said to her, "We're making our own call. We know some shifters who don't pretend to be werewolves. We all enjoy a good hunt."

Leroan nodded and there was agreement from the others as well.

Arturro turned away from the witches. Oro wished he wouldn't turn his back on them, agreement or no agreement.

"I think the Cullen family has fled to Italy," he said. "They are desperate and looking for help, the same way we are."

"What's in Italy?" One of the werewolves asked.

"My first creations," Arturro responded.

* * *

"We can't just leave them out there, Carlisle," Alice said, "Edward doesn't plan on coming to Italy and we can't call them."

The remaining members of Carlisle's family had just arrived in Italy and were heading for their last resort. To go to the Volturri was near suicide and no one liked the plan very much. Carlisle had spent almost an hour that morning trying to convince Emmet to stay but since Rosalie's death, Emmet had lost some of his humanity. He took off after the weres who had followed Edward's family and no one had heard from him since. Carlisle had yet to mention Esmé in a conversation or the five shifters who had died. The Cullens knew each of the shifters who died, most notably the boys Quil and Embry. Their bodies were found after two hours of searching and almost three hours of trying to identify who was who. It appeared the weres took especially good care of ripping them apart.

It was the combined deaths of Rosalie and Esmé with the brutality inflicted upon the boys that led Carlisle to turn to the Volturri. Maybe they knew- or were strong enough- to stop Marcus and Arturro.

* * *

The witches finally released their spell and turned to face the house. The sun had completely set by this point and Arturro went out to front yard to meet them.

Oro and the weres watched from the window.

* * *

Arturro reentered the house with a strange look on his face. Oro looked at him alarmingly but Arturro shook his head.

"I'll let the witches tell you about their plan," he said.

Hannah entered the house a moment later.

"The Third Generation vampires you hunt have many friends," she began, "and it is quite hard to track every single one of them. It appears that the vampires have contacted every single one of their allies and are using every strategy they can come up with. We can hold off their allied forces while you take down the Cullen family."

"You can do that?" Oro asked. "You can stop 100 vampires?"

One of the other sisters entered the house.

"It's hard to follow and track the progress of a large number of anything. But creating a spell that would bind all Arturrian vampires is quite easy. You seem to underestimate our abilities." The witch stared coldly at Oro and Oro gladly returned the stare.

"Don't be mad at them, Lucia," Hannah said, "They will see the true extent of our power soon enough."


	7. Chapter 7

Oro held her tongue for as long as she could, which was only two more seconds.

"I can't do this," she blurted out. "I cannot trust witches whether they are promising to help or if they're dead. I will not be a part of this."

Behind her, the weres nodded in agreement.

Arturro let out a small growl as he watched his forces side with Oro.

"Oro," he began, but Oro cut him off.

"My sister," she said almost violently, "was burned at the stake trying to protect children who were accused of witchcraft. Turned out the little brats were real witches and they could have saved her at any time. By the time I got there, she was dead and the children were _dancing_. They were ecstatic that someone else died to protect them."

Oro was shaking as she stared at Hannah.

"I was changed into a vampire the next day and I killed every single one of those cursed little beasts- and my, my, their blood tasted _good_."

Oro then turned and jumped out a window.

Arturro didn't follow Oro. No one moved for a few minutes until Hannah said,

"Her sister must have been the martyr Selene."

Lucia nodded. "That story has been passed down for a thousand years. But it's told a little differently than what Oro has said. Selene sacrificed herself to help witches, the story goes. Never have I heard that the children tricked her into dying for them."

"Oro must also be the other creature in that story," Hannah mused. "The legend says that Selene sacrificed herself and then a vampire murdered all the children. That story is why witches have sworn to protect humans and kill vampires."

"Congratulations," Arturro said. "You have just met the one who gave you your purpose in life."

* * *

Oro paced around the house for a few minutes until Arturro joined her in the back yard. He didn't approach her but instead stood at the tree line.

"We need them, Oro."

Oro remained sullenly silent as she shifted from one foot to the other.

"They can track the Cullen family and help us locate where they are. We can sniff around for only so long."

He paused.

"But you need to trust me. If I don't have your trust, I won't have the trust of the weres. And you know we will never eradicate my creations without the weres."

Oro turned to face him.

"They are only here to track the Third Gens?" Oro asked.

Arturro smiled and walked towards her, his arm stretched out.

"Yes, love. They are only here to track them and then they are gone. I would never put you in harm's way intentionally."

Oro gave him a small smile.

"Well…" she said, dragging the word out, "I thought we could use some extra hands so I made a call."

Arturro's face was expressionless as his arm dropped to his side.

"Who did you call?" He asked.

"You remember the last vampires Marcus created before he decided to never create again?"

Arturro's eyebrows rose.

"You called the _sisters_? You know they are slightly insane, right?"

Oro grinned, her fangs flashing.

"Yes," she said, "I figured we could use a little crazy considering we have witches and werewolves fighting for us!"


	8. Chapter 8

Bella was furious.

Still classified as a 'young' vampire, her strength outweighed that of Demetri and Felix and she was able to push past them easily. Completely taken aback, the twins, Jane and Alec, barely had time to move in front of their masters before Bella burst into their chambers.

"You are a bunch of liars!" She shrieked. Edward trailed behind her into the hall, anxiety running across his face.

"I do not understand, child." Aro said calmly.

"Bella-" Edward started.

"We were attacked three days ago," Bella growled, "by a man who called himself Arturro. Sound familiar?"

Aro's eyebrows but Bella continued before he could speak.

"They told us," She said, "that we are not real vampires. We are just second-rate half-breeds compared to him and _Marcus_." She hissed the last name. "The real first vampire in existence, not you."

Aro still stayed silent as Bella fumed.

"We are being hunted because of your mistakes! This isn't my war!"

Caius moved to stand in front of Aro.

"I doubt Arturro will come here," he said in his papery-thin voice. "He has not made an attempt on our lives for a long time and we have a larger force than we did last time."

Aro peeked around his brother and asked, "Where is your child?"

Edward shook his head. None of the Volturri were taking this seriously.

Jacob and Renesmé were outside. Jacob refused to let Nessie anywhere near these monsters. Bella slowly inhaled, watching Aro as he asked Marcus what to do about Arturro.

Marcus, silent as ever, barely blinked and said nothing to Aro. Aro, seemingly satisfied, rose from his chair and floated down the steps to where Bella and Edward stood.

"You really have nothing to fear, children. Arturro would not stand a chance against a force such as ours."

Suddenly there was a commotion outside. Even though every creature in the room was a vampire, no one could hear what was happening clearly.

Jane made to move towards the doors, which were suddenly thrown open. A red-haired woman held both Felix and Demetri by their throats and dragged them into the room. Following her was another woman with red hair, who appeared to be her twin.

Aro, who had sat down again, jumped to his feet. The look of alarm on his face was enough for Bella to know these were real vampires, not Arturrian.

Oro, Bella knew, had white hair and was not following these two women. She was also slightly relieved to see that Arturro was not behind them, either.

The first woman dropped Felix and Demetri on the ground, baring her fangs at them before looking up at the Arturrians around her.

"Apparently," the woman said, "there is a large bounty out on Arturrian vampires-" her gaze fell on Bella and her voice cut off. "The one who brings Bella Cullen and her coven to Arturro will be rewarded greatly by Marcus himself."

"Who are you?" Edward asked quickly. Bella glanced over at him, only to see his face contort in confusion. "Your thoughts…"

The second woman stepped up, saying, "I am surprised your gift is working that well with us. Usually Arturrian gifts do not function in the presence of real vampires."

The first woman rolled her eyes.

"We are the last vampires Marcus created," She said. "I am Aerome and this is my sister, Shayna."

Shayna, her face devoid of emotion, cocked her head to the side and said,

"We are here to kill you."

Jane waited for no command and moved forward. Aro called for her to stop, but it was too late. Aerome smiled with her fangs bared and jumped to meet her.

The struggle was short.

Jane, who had become accustomed to using her gift instead of actual combat, simply didn't move fast enough. Aerome grabbed onto her left arm and swung her around like a child's toy. But whereas a child would swing gently, Aerome looked as if she was throwing the discus.

Jane's body detached from her arm with a metallic crack. She flew gracefully over Aro before landing with a crash on the floor behind him. Jane let out a scream as she struggled to her feet. The entire room was frozen as Shayna appeared over Jane. Soon, all was silent.

The room stayed in its suspended state for a moment longer before Alec, Demetri and Felix lost control and charged Aerome and Shayna. Shayna slipped in between Aro and Caius's chairs and jumped on Demetri's back. Aerome let Felix and Alec come to her as she laughed with delight.

Bella, who was now at the point of hyperventilating, faced Edward. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to the far wall.

"We need to get out of here," he whispered. "You need to get outside to Nessie and Jacob and run."

Bella fumbled for words and shook her head violently.

Before any action could be taken, the doors of the chamber opened once more.

Oro cocked her head to the side and looked around, saying over her shoulder, "Why do Aerome and Shayna _always_ beat us to everything?" She stamped her foot for emphasis.

To Bella's horror, Arturro appeared behind Oro.

They both wore heavy cloaks with large hoods and Bella almost forgot that is was daylight outside.

In the fastest movement Bella had ever seen, Arturro moved past everyone else and stopped a mere foot away from his first creations. Caius wet his lips and quickly pressed a button on the seat he had been occupying. The floor vanished beneath him and he disappeared into the vault. Marcus stood his ground while Aro looked bravely into his creator's eyes.

"I heard you were in town," Aro said with a smile on his face.

"I heard you were telling everyone you were the first vampires created." Arturro responded. "You know how much I hate liars."

Aro shrugged. "I wouldn't have so many friends if they knew the truth- which is that my maker cannot walk in sunlight!" He pulled a lever on his chair, which released a giant fixture on the ceiling. Gears groaned and suddenly a flap fell open from the ceiling and flooded the chamber with sunlight.

Oro, Aerome and Shayna screeched in displeasure and in her anger and haste, Shayna ripped off Demetri's head before fleeing the room.

Arturro stood calmly in the sunlight as it burned his skin. His age gave him more time in direct sunlight but it would take longer to heal later.

"You will regret this," he said quietly. In a snake-like motion, he reached out and gripped Aro's shoulder. Aro's face twitched from the pain but he said in an equally quiet voice, "You are running out of time, Master."

Arturro's skin was crackling. With one final growl, he released Aro and vanished from the chamber.


	9. Chapter 9

Sometimes Oro forgot that Marcus was the first vampire ever created. He was twenty-five when he was bitten, making him look young for all eternity. Before the war on Arturrians was started, she hardly ever saw her maker. Marcus had set up a high-tech research laboratory focused on one thing. He did not care about trying to find a cure for vampirism or how to farm humans. He was focused for nearly fifty years on taming his brother, William.

It was a long time before Marcus was able to even bring William out of his cage. William was Marcus's twin, making him the same age as his brother when the rabid wolf took its bite, but you wouldn't be able to tell much of anything from the way he looked today.

William was seven feet tall, over a foot taller than any of his descendants. He was physically incapable of changing his form back to that of a human and had lost nearly all of his humanity. It was a miracle that he could remember Marcus's scent and would not hurt him. Marcus, Oro knew, regretted ever having confined his brother and was determined to help him at any cost.

The cost of Marcus's determination actually turned out to be quite high. Marcus spent the better half of a decade searching for the few remaining werewolves created by his brother specifically. These beasts could not turn back into humans and were valuable to Marcus's research. He conducted dozens of tests on the werewolves and when his subjects died, Marcus was forced to start using Lycans. The culmination of Marcus's studies produced a tonic that would cause William's eyes to change color. After months of experiments, it was proven that William regained human consciousness when his eyes retreated back from their angry red to his original blue. He was still unruly and hard to control, but listened to his brother.

Oro had never seen William in the flesh and wondered if Arturro ever had. Marcus stopped trusting anyone after he made the mistake of trying to create a vampire hierarchy that consisted of two traitors that attempted to overthrow him. The Chain of Elders, as it was known, eventually took control and caught William. William was then put in a cage underground for centuries until Marcus seized power once again. Marcus had already endured one mutiny by his creations when Arturro created his line of vampires. There were only two things Marcus did not like. He did not enjoy farming humans with the sole purpose of harvesting blood, or getting involved in conflicts when William was higher on his list of priorities.

When Oro thought of how much Marcus did not want to be involved with Arturro's war, she did not imagine how upset he would be when they finally had to tell him they missed… again.

"Do I have to do everything myself?!" Marcus roared.

Oro almost fled the room but stayed in guilt of leaving Arturro to face the wrath of his creator alone.

Before either vampire could say anything more, Shayna entered the room.

After the debacle in Italy, Arturro and Oro traveled to Hungary to tell Marcus. Aerome and Shayna disappeared. Oro liked Shayna just fine but was weary of Aerome. From what she'd heard, Aerome had been a prisoner of some of the most well-known vampire hunters in an underground lair and had lost some of her sanity in the process. It was understandable that Oro became worried when Shayna entered the room alone.

After giving Marcus a nod, she spoke.

"As you know, my sister spent almost fifteen years in a dungeon. She can navigate any sewer, tunnel or underground fortress better than anyone I have ever met. After you left, Arturro, she went looking for Caius. She found a lot more."

Stepping aside, Shayna revealed Aerome, who dragged behind her two bodies. One sniff told Oro these were humans- and they smelled hardly like any human she had ever encountered. Oro looked closer and got a whiff of what smelled like rotting flesh.

"I was looking for Caius," Aerome started, "but found an entire colony of half-starved humans covered in track marks. Their skin nearly burned when I pulled them out of the caves." She dropped the bodies in front of Marcus. "It appears as though the Volturri have been collecting and farming humans."

Marcus stared down at the bodies. It was hard to tell if they were male or female and Oro was disgusted by the mere thought of harvesting humans to keep handy if you get hungry.

Marcus did not say anything for a long moment.

Finally he looked away from the bodies and Oro caught his gaze for a brief second. A fire blazed within him, she saw immediately, and knew something was going to happen.

"When can you have the werewolves ready?" He asked Arturro.

"At any time."

Marcus nodded. "Send the weres after the Cullen's. I am going to Italy. Your creations have never seen me, only heard of me. They will fall beneath me."

Oro tried to speak for a moment but gave up as she watched Arturro and Marcus plan. As they came up with a strategy, Marcus rolled his shoulders and set his jaw.

He moved to the doorway and just as he was about to disappear through it, he said,

"And I am bringing William."


	10. Chapter 10

Carlisle used every precaution as he carefully moved his family across the country. He still assumed his human identity but did not trust anyone after sunset. Alice was of hardly any use to them when it came to her ability to foresee the future. When it came to the real vampires, none of their gifts were working.

It was a beautiful morning when the remains of the Cullen family moved away from the city and back towards the Grand Canyon. Emmet hadn't spoken more than five words in nearly two weeks since Rosalie died. Carlisle kept his family moving, not willing to let anyone else die.

They didn't stay long in the woods, moving back towards civilization after feeding.

Even if Alice's gift had been working properly, she wouldn't have seen them coming.

In their human form, they were identical to any other human. Because they were near a national landmark, Carlisle had assumed they would encounter a few humans along the way and disregarded the ones that followed his family as they made their way back to the highway. The second the car was within sight, Carlisle knew he had made a mistake.

One of the 'humans' stood on top of the car. Three more were leaning against it.

The one that stood on the car cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders.

"No more of those shapeshifters," he said, grinning. His teeth were razor-sharp fangs. "They were just in the way. Now there's one for each of us!"

Jasper and Emmet moved forward as the man jumped from the car. Alice had seen how fast Jacob could transform into a wolf but these werewolves somehow moved faster. With one loud crack, the man landed on Emmet no longer as a man, but instead a snarling mass of fur. Emmet roared as the were sank his teeth into his forearm and pulled him like a rag doll. Emmet's arm detached from his body and went flying into the brush.

The next man didn't even transform. He waited for Jasper to tackle him and simply threw him over his shoulder. Jasper landed on his feet and ran at him again. This time, as Jasper caught on to the werewolf, he held on and squeezed. The man gave out a high pitched howl and scrambled around, trying to get Jasper off.

Carlisle and Alice gave each other a look and stayed stationary as their respective werewolves stalked towards them. Alice moved first, running to the left and trying to dodge the were. The man roared in frustration and transformed. He leapt into the trees to chase Alice.

Carlisle opened his mouth to reason with his attacker. He looked around and saw Emmet on the ground with the werewolf on top of him, while Jasper still desperately hung onto the now-transforming werewolf. He knew this was the end and did not fight back as a red-eyed werewolf charged him.

Alice ran steadily in one direction for a solid minute before hearing two howls behind her. She came to a crashing halt, whirled around, and picked up her fastest run back to the car. The werewolf that chased her breezed right by her until realizing what had happened and let out a bark of anger. Alice made it back to the car in time to witness a horrifying sight. Emmet was struggling to stand up but was having a tough time because he no longer had any arms. Two werewolves were ripping apart what must have been Carlisle, the metallic sound of Arturrian vampire skin ripping ringing through the trees. Jasper was still fighting off the last werewolf, both limping. Hearing the wolf coming up behind her, Alice waited… and then took one step to the left as the werewolf charged through the exact spot she had been standing in a moment earlier. The scene seemed to freeze for a moment as both Emmet and Jasper yelled for Alice to run. The sound of Emmet's voice caused the two weres playing with the remains of Carlisle to turn on him. Emmet's voice was soon drowned out by the snarls of the two wolves as they descended upon him.

Alice tried to form words but couldn't. All she could do was try to dodge the werewolf that was getting angrier and angrier as it tried to catch her. She tried to concentrate on Jasper and move closer to help him but the weres anticipated her moves and stopped her every time. The weres tired of Emmet and moved to focus on her. Three sets of mutated eyes followed her movements and in his last efforts, Jasper yelled to get their attention.

Alice wasted no time in jumping into the mass of growling, spitting bodies as they attacked Jasper. All it took was one of the weres to look up and spot her and catch her throat in his mouth like a Frisbee. One bite was all it took to separate Alice's head from the rest of her body. As soon as this happened, Jasper stopped fighting and let death come to him so he would be reunited with his family.

* * *

Arturro ended the call on his cell phone and stuffed it back into his pocket. Turning to face Oro in the backseat of the cab of the eighteen-wheeler, he said,

"The weres have taken care of the Cullen's."

He turned to face forward again and addressed Marcus, who was in the driver's seat. They had just passed into Slovenia and were headed back to Italy.

"I hope this works," Arturro said to his maker.

Marcus said nothing.


	11. Chapter 11

"I think it's gross."  
"It's completely gross!"

"How did he do it, anyway? How did he create these things?"

Two average-looking women crossed their arms at the same time and looked down a shallow hill at a scene no one had ever laid eyes on before.

Three men were coming up the hill, one shaking his head.

"They are real. I don't know how they managed to do it, but it's definitely real."

"We should go," another one of the men commented. "It'll be dawn soon."

Without a sound, the five vampires vanished, leaving the sight.

* * *

In a different country, a similar scene was taking place. A group of Arturrian vampires discovered a horrific scene in the middle of the day. None of them could speak of what they saw.

* * *

Apparently Arturro had gained quite a following when he called for a war against all third-generation vampires. Many second-generation vampires were taking matters into their own hands and one group was certainly making a statement. Known as the Death Dealers, they once belonged to one of the most powerful covens in the world, headed by the recently deceased vampire elder Viktor. Their numbers dwindled after Marcus personally decimated the coven once finding out Viktor was planning on overthrowing him.

After Marcus's retaliation, the Death Dealers were shunned. It was believed that someone was leading them once more to hunt Arturrian vampires. They were leaving very distinct messages to all supernatural life. The scenes the vampires had witnessed were only two of the many messages that were appearing all over the world.

The Death Dealers would ambush a coven of Arturrians, dismember their bodies and put the heads on stakes near other covens. No one could figure out how they got the heads to stay on the stakes.

Because Marcus had been so preoccupied with William, he hadn't been paying attention to what his descendants had been plotting, which led to the Death Dealers rising to power once more. Arturrians were hiding in fear, while second-generation vampires were either joining the fight or staying clear of the war entirely.

* * *

In northern Italy, the sun had finally set and the evening was warm. Oro was playing with her white hair, not paying much attention to what Arturro was doing until his phone rang.

She looked over at him. They were standing outside on the bank of a river. Oro could easily hear the voice on the other end and involuntarily shuddered when she realized it was Hannah Malkin, one of the witches. Oro hoped this call was the last they were going to hear from the witches. They had held to their end of the deal and helped the werewolves find the Cullens in the United States. Arturro said a few words and snapped the phone shut.

"What is it?"

Arturro rolled his eyes as he turned to face her.

"Well," he sighed, "Aro is making his move about fifty miles from here. Hannah tells me he has an army of Third Generation vampires at his disposal."

"Will Edward and Bella be there?" Oro asked anxiously.

"She didn't say," Arturro said. He tossed the phone to her. "You can call Marcus."

Marcus had left them two days before to prepare William for travel from a location that not even Arturro knew.

* * *

Oro lifted her face from the neck of a handsome Italian man. She dabbed some of her own blood into the teeth marks in his neck to heal the wounds and then stood. The man looked up at her groggily with a drunken smile and she gave him a half-smile in return.

On the opposite side of the nightclub, Arturro was finishing with an overweight stripper who found the entire experience hilarious. Oro watched him as he pushed the woman away with a disgusted look on his face and stood up. She met him at the far wall.

Arturro didn't say anything for a moment but the second Oro heard the door open behind them, she realized what was making Arturro upset.

Three women and two men entered the club. One of the men spotted Arturro immediately and cut through the throngs of people.

"Hello, Arturro."

Arturro didn't turn to face the man but said, "Harnock. What are you doing here?"

The others made their way over and Oro recognized one of the women.

If Oro had hackles, they would have been raised as she stared down the woman in front of her. Since they had met nearly two hundred years ago, Oro could only find hate in her heart when she looked at this fellow vampire.

Oro didn't hold many prejudices, but this woman was her one exception. Maybe she didn't like her because Oro couldn't understand how anyone would be comfortable in tight leather all the time but Oro didn't like her mostly because she shared the same name as her sister.

In the times when the Death Dealers were active and their leader, Viktor, was still alive, one woman was very good at her job of hunting Lycans. It was theorized that Viktor picked her because of her resemblance to his own long-lost daughter, but mostly because she knew the location of William's first prison. Her hair an inky black and always clad in skin-tight leather, her name was Selene.

Oro clicked her teeth together and fought the urge to launch herself at Selene. Arturro placed a hand on her shoulder as he addressed the others.

"I can't imagine what would interest you here," Arturro said calmly, "there are no Third Generation vampires here for you to mount on stakes."

The male vampire known as Harnock laughed. Several of the humans nearby looked over curiously.

"We are not here for them." Selene said. Her face was devoid of any emotion- a stark contrast to Oro, who was almost fuming next to Arturro.

"We would like to make an arrangement. If we destroy the Arturrians, the Death Dealers can come out of hiding. We will be hunted no more and can live our lives in peace. I would ask Marcus myself, but we don't really get along."

Now Oro remembered why she hated Selene. Selene once tried to kill Marcus to save his descendant, Michael Corvinus. Michael was a special case- he was half vampire, half Lycan.

"Where's your hybrid, Selene?" Oro snarled.

"He's hiding, just like the rest of my family," Selene snapped.

"Alright, alright," Arturro said, holding up his hands. "I can't get in contact with Marcus right now but it would definitely please not only him but me as well if you were to eliminate some Third Generation vampires. So go on, now, and do your job."

Selene and Oro shared another vicious look before Selene turned on her heel and led the others from the club. As soon as they were out of sight, Arturro shook his head.

"Marcus will never agree to anything involving the Death Dealers. If Selene comes in a mile radius of either William or Marcus, they'll kill her."

* * *

It was closing in on two in the morning as Oro and Arturro approached the location the witches had mentioned. Oro sighed and ended her seventh phone call.

"No one else is coming. Not a single vampire wants anything to do with this fight. And I'm not calling the Death Dealers."

"We'll be fine," Arturro said nonchalantly. "Marcus and William will be there."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Oro inhaled sharply and coughed on the sudden odor of Arturrian skin. Baring her fangs, she looked around and noticed they had entered a small clearing. White skinned sparkled in the sparse moonlight and Oro counted a dozen Arturrians on her right alone. She lowered herself into a crouch and a couple of them backed off. Smiling, Oro thought they were backing away from her but stood up quickly when she smelled a new scent.

Oro knew the distinct scent of a dozen different beings. Second generation vampires, Arturrian vampires, werewolves, Lycans, shapeshifters and witches all smelled different. But the second Oro inhaled, she realized this was something she had never encountered before.

Turning slowly, she saw Marcus coming through the trees and knew it had to be one thing: William.

Oro had grown up as a vampire listening to stories of William; legends made him the most-feared being in the eyes of any vampire. Oro had an image of him as a beast of extreme proportions and soaked in all information anyone had about the first werewolf. Oro realized not a single story she ever heard did William justice as Marcus appeared through the trees, a single chain dragging behind him.


	12. Chapter 12

Oro had been a vampire for a long time. Since learning of supernatural life, nothing surprised her. She knew she was one of the most powerful creations on earth, but was speechless for the first time in hundreds' of years when she spotted the twin of Marcus.

Oro sucked in a breath and almost chocked on the scent of William. His body was the same general shape as all other Lycans- a humanoid body covered in fur with the head of a wolf. But Lycans' fur is black, while William's fur was whiter than snow. William was taller than any other Lycan, his head enormous and his claws the size of Oro's hands. Marcus looked like a child next to the hulking form of his brother and Oro was suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to run away from William and to never stop running.

Marcus clicked his teeth and his eyes darted around the area. Several of the Arturrians lining the trees shifted uneasily, watching him. The transformation was faster than a werewolf transforming. Marcus cracked his neck and held his arms outstretched, as if to hug his prey. Wings erupted from his back and his skin turned gray and leathery. Even though he was still tiny compared to his brother, he grew considerably in size. He was a foot taller now than any of the Arturrians.

Suddenly two Arturrian vampires found themselves impaled by Marcus's wings and the fight exploded. Oro realized no one was holding the chain connected to William and saw him take down three Arturrians with one swing of his paw.

Even though she believed that Marcus and William could probably kill all of the Arturrians in the area, Oro found herself doubting this would actually work. She was more than willing to jump into the fray but watching William swinging at anything that came near him made her hesitate. She realized why no other second generation vampires had come to help them. Still internally debating, Oro saw William pick up an Arturrian in his mouth and shook so hard that the body ripped in two. He reared on his hind legs and let out a roar that echoed through the woods.

Somehow the numbers of Arturrian vampires were increasing. Even though she would have rather fled the area, Oro clothes-lined the nearest vampire and ripped his head off with a guttural growl. Staying as far away from William as possible, Oro took off the head of any Arturrian that strayed too close to her.

There was a growing pile of Arturrians at William's feet and he suddenly howled.

Oro jumped to a nearby tree branch just in time to see a rare sight. She had never learned much about Lycans in her lifetime as a vampire. All she ever needed to know was how to kill them. But as she watched the scene unfold beneath her, she realized Lycans and vampires must not be all that different. As soon as William's howl cut off, it appeared as though werewolves were coming from every direction. Black fur filled the small clearing and William's white fur stuck out as his descendants flooded around him. Even though William was not their direct maker, these Lycans responded to his call.

As soon as the mass appeared, it disappeared. The Lycans took the Arturrian army with it, leaving bodies of both species behind. Only a few Lycans had been killed, while the number of Arturrian bodies was incredible.

Oro looked around and spotted Arturro, sitting in a nearby tree, looking as calm as can be. She waited for him to jump to the ground before she followed. The sound of their footfalls attracted William's attention and Oro almost jumped back into the tree when he whirled to face them.

"Easy, brother," Marcus said. He slowly began shifting into his human form but as his wings started to shrink back into his shoulders, a voice spoke from the woods.

"He really is impressive," Aro's silky voice said from the dense underbrush.

Oro, whose nerves were frayed from watching the sheer amount of Lycans rush by her and have to not attack them, rushed almost blindly at Aro but found herself in the arms of Arturro just before she could latch onto his first creation.

Aro's smiling face only made Oro angrier.

"The vampire is more out of control than the werewolf!" He exclaimed. "Now I have indeed seen everything."

"What do you have left to say, Arturrian, before we kill you?" Marcus said.

"I have something you may want. I heard you were working on a cure for that-" he waved his hand at William, who let out a deep growl. "But you missed one crucial part, which I have managed to turn into a solution for all your problems."

Marcus narrowed his eyes.

"How could you possibly know more than me?" He asked in a clipped tone. His wings, which had been shrinking back into his back, reformed and extended once more.

Oro looked between Aro and Marcus. She had no idea what they were talking about. Arturro had loosed his grip enough for her to twist around and look at him but he was focused on Aro with a rare look on his face. Arturro looked more shocked than Oro had ever seen him before.

"Not only do I have all the answers you've been searching for, I have something you'd probably like to stay hidden."

William suddenly roared and took several steps towards Aro. Marcus grabbed onto the chain dragging from his brother's neck but moved forward as well, looking just as impatient as William.

"Stop with the riddles!" Marcus shouted. "Speak clearly!"

Aro raised his eyebrows and half-smiled. Marcus and William had taken the bait.

"You have been searching for a cure for your dear brother. I have discovered it. As for what should stay hidden, it is a virus."

"What." Oro said.

Arturro dropped his arms and said, "You're lying."

Aro shrugged and casually took a few steps around the small clearing.

"I listen to what the shadows say," he began, "and once I heard what the great Marcus was planning, I realized I knew what he was looking for."

He stopped and turned to face Arturro.

"It turns out I have many more supporters than you know, master. When in the face of death, they can be persuaded to do just about anything."

Oro watched Aro talk to Arturro. Aro held his ground with a level of defiance she would expect to see from a rebellious teenager. Aro, she thought, must be thrilled to stand up to his creator.

Marcus shook his head. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Aro turned to him, the amused look gone from his face.

"Do I? I think I know exactly what I'm talking about! You've tried verbena, I assume, and every variation of aconitum, the strongest form of wolfs bane in the world? You could work in circles for millennia before ever _considering_ what I have discovered!"

William, who had been standing behind Marcus, let out a grunt and made to move past his brother. Aro danced to the side, anticipating the werewolf jumping at him.

"If you kill me, my followers will release the virus and you will never learn of the cure!" Aro yelled. "You try to kill me and I will unleash the greatest weapon this world has ever known! I have warned you about trying to hunt us, my master," Aro sneered, his voice faltering, "I told you after you killed Johanas. I will see your demise!"

Aro held up a cell phone.

"I make one phone call and my weapon will be released!"

Arturro moved closer to Oro. "After I killed Johanas," he said, "Aro claimed he was creating a virus that would bring about the end of humanity. I didn't believe him, considering if he tried to take away our food source, he would be taking away his own food source."

Oro nearly yelled, "Are you out of your mind? Killing off humans isn't going to help you!" She let out a shriek and charged at Aro.

Arturro jumped forward and grabbed her around her middle.

William let out a strange-pitched whine and Marcus turned quickly to face him.

"We have to get out of here," he said in a low voice. "The serum is wearing off. I am losing control of William."

Aro cackled and waved his little device around. "I have the most powerful weapon! You will surrender yourself and tell the world that _I_ am the true vampire!"


End file.
